Photo: Instagram/Salvage and Wreck
Storm Corrie, known for unleashing winds of up to 120 kph (74.5 mph) in the North Sea, has caused a bulk carrier to anchor off the coast of Ijmuiden, Netherlands, earlier this week. The drifting Julietta D ended up not just colliding with an oil tanker but also hitting the foundation of a platform before rescue efforts led by the Dutch Coast Guard finally brought it back to safety.
The Julietta D bulk carrier collided with the Pechora Star chemical tanker near Ijmuiden, then drifted towards the coast of Scheveningen. After the collision, it started taking on water, so the 18 crew members had to be evacuated via helicopter, facing the harsh weather conditions, gCaptain reports. The crew was successfully evacuated, and the tanker didn’t lose any cargo either.
While continuing to drift, the crewless ship then allided with an offshore platform foundation in the vicinity of the Hollandse Kust Zuid windfarm. It was a real race to try to bring the loose vessel back to shore after that. A first towing connection was only achieved in the evening when the Sovereign, a massive Boskalis tug, managed to prevent the Julietta D from going further on the Dutch coast.
Later that evening, a second tug established an additional connection, but it soon had to be severed because of the very rough sea conditions. Finally, on February 2, a second large Boskalis tug, called Manta, was able to secure a towing connection. According to SWZ Maritime, the tug also came fully loaded with salvage equipment and transported an additional team of rescuers to the site. Apparently, one of the crew members onboard the Sovereign was injured, but it’s unclear how serious the injuries were.
This significant salvage effort required assistance from The Royal Netherlands Sea Rescue Institution and the Belgian Coast Guard, together with Boskalis’ SMIT Salvage. And it was all worth it – the drifting Julietta D is now finally in the port of Rotterdam, and none of the crew members onboard were injured.
While continuing to drift, the crewless ship then allided with an offshore platform foundation in the vicinity of the Hollandse Kust Zuid windfarm. It was a real race to try to bring the loose vessel back to shore after that. A first towing connection was only achieved in the evening when the Sovereign, a massive Boskalis tug, managed to prevent the Julietta D from going further on the Dutch coast.
Later that evening, a second tug established an additional connection, but it soon had to be severed because of the very rough sea conditions. Finally, on February 2, a second large Boskalis tug, called Manta, was able to secure a towing connection. According to SWZ Maritime, the tug also came fully loaded with salvage equipment and transported an additional team of rescuers to the site. Apparently, one of the crew members onboard the Sovereign was injured, but it’s unclear how serious the injuries were.
This significant salvage effort required assistance from The Royal Netherlands Sea Rescue Institution and the Belgian Coast Guard, together with Boskalis’ SMIT Salvage. And it was all worth it – the drifting Julietta D is now finally in the port of Rotterdam, and none of the crew members onboard were injured.
De lierbedienaar van de SAR-helikopter @NhvHelicopters maakte deze beelden van de evacuatie. Alle 18 bemanningsleden van het vrachtschip zijn door 3 helikopters van boord gehaald (inclusief één heli van de Belgische Kustwacht @agentschapMDK). #kustwacht #nhv pic.twitter.com/3o9z3CXzki
— Kustwacht Nederland (@Kustwacht_nl) February 1, 2022
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